From Highlands of Corillera to Beachlands of Aurora Province: Baler

For days I have been travelling around the beautiful mountains of the Cordillera Region and it just came to my mind that I needed to have a beach escapade and the nearest place would be in the Province of Aurora. Thats right, Im heading to Baler, Aurora. From Highlands to the Beachlands of Aurora. 

Baler, Aurora is famous for its surfing because of its location facing the mightly Pacific Ocean. Reaching Baler from Banaue is a 7-8 hours away and a stopover at Cabanatuan City via Florida Bus Lines. At 4:00am, I reached Cabanatuan City, rested for awhile and waited until 7:00am to catch the first trip to Baler via Aurora Bus Lines. 

 A breath of fresh ocean breeze welcomed me in Baler. What a beautiful site although its black sand but the place is lovely and alot different from the previous days I’ve been too. First thing to do was to find a place to rest since previously I have been deprived of a good long sleep and my feet was still tired from the uphill walks of Banaue. 

I have scouted many hotels along Sabang beach area but it seems none fits to my budget. Many hotels are topclass but Im looking for a cheaper one. If you have extra money, Bays Inn and Bay-ler View are one of the best in the area and if you are in groups of 4-5,  Mahdox Backdoor Villa is best for you. 

Finally I have found a right accommodation for me but I failed to know their name but people call it “BALI HOUSE” because of its Balinese inspired design. The caretaker gave me a 100 peso discount from 300 to 200 pesos a night. 

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Dont tell BIR what I did with my TIN ID at Batac, Banaue

The long trek to Batad made me very hungry and the good place to eat my lunch at Simons Viewpoint Inn famous for its pizza.

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Unlimited Rice: The Batad Rice Terraces

If there is something I can be proud of as a Filipino traveler, its the Batad Rice Terraces in Cordillera Region of the Philippines.

Although it was hard to get here considering the long walks uphill, everything was all worth it. I lost words to describe the terraces because its simply magical. As soon as I see the amphitheater-like terraces, my heart just palpitate. Batad absolutely captured my heart. This is the place that every tourist and Filipino should go. 

The rice terraces were an ancient artworks of the Ifugao people carved using ancient tools putting all their blood and sweat to create this masterpiece. There was no mathematics or science before but the Ifugao people has ingeniously built that is something no other cultures can do. If there’s a word for it- probabably its precision farming. They are gifted people who learned the art of stoneworks and water irrigations all by themselves. 

When tourist visit the Philippine provinces, one thing for sure is they’ll have a picture of a ricefields since our country’s staple food is rice. But nothing really compares to Batad Rice Terraces thats why its included in the UNESCO Heritage site. During my stay, there were visitors checking out the place again and it looks like its a positive outcome from what I see. It remained to be beautiful despite the times have passed. 

The terraces can be enjoyed at different viewpoints, that means another walk if you want to take a best shot or look at it. But any point for me is spectular. I could imagine how the Igugaos risk their life to do till the ground. Farming is not an easy task but carving in a slope is even harder.

During trip, Im so blessed that I saw the grass in their healthy green color and some patches are in golden yellow almost ready to be harvested. One local said that there is a pattern on planting rice, this perhaps ensure year round harvest. 

Descending down from the Batad town proper to the small village is another challenge a traveler faces. The pathways are really small, its like a street that takes you to the village. Locals are just used to it, it looked so easy for them. One woman carry loadfull of goods to his head at ease and kids just make it their playground.

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To Batad Rice Terraces - The Hard Way Up

If Sagada has hanging coffin, in Banaue they have Hanging House which has become a favorite tourist attraction. 

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On Track: Bontoc to Banaue by Bus

 After spending overnight in Sagada, I headed next to one of the Philippines pride, so called the 8th Wonder of the World–The Banaue Rice Terraces.

I woke up early from  peaceful night in Sagada to catch the first trip to Bontoc. At 7:00am, we depart the place and arrived in Bontoc an hour after. Jeepney trips from Sagada runs every hour until 1pm and buses are aslo available enroute to Baguio City. 

First thing I did in Bontoc was to look for a place to eat breakfast and consequently I missed the first trip to Banaue. Good thing another bus company Immanuel Transportt has a schedule at 9:00am to Santiago City passing Banaue, Ifugao and another 3 hour of  butt-aching trip. 

My bag was a bit heavier because of the wet clothes from my spelunking activity back in Sagada, so what I did was to hang dry them while waiting for the bus to go. It started to smell but I didnt mind as long as its dry. This is a simple tip to all travelers. 

Finally, we departed 10 minutes delayed from schedule. It looked like a great day, no signs of rains and it was all clear blue skies ahead. 

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For the Thrill: Spelunking in Sagada

What was just a normal sightseeing to a cave, turned out to be an adventure of a lifetime.

The peaceful town of Sagada can be a haven for thrilling adventures and this town is popular for its huge caves, the Lumiang and Sumaging Caves. Your trip to Sagada is not complete without seeing or experiencing this attraction. Who can miss it, its just a 10 minute walk from the town. 

The first cave we visited is the Lumiang Cave which is more famous for its coffins. Unlike the one in Echo Valley where coffins are hanged, here the coffins are filed up to each other and approximately there are little or less 100 coffins presently preserved. 

The mouth of the cave is really huge, creepy and totally dark. One can play to his mind a monster living in the mysterious chamber. The coffins made good impression of spirits living in the cave and theres no way that I will go inside. 

The coffins are really old and some are opened by irresponsible travels. When travelling to this historic and cultural place, everyone must leave the place undisturbed, I mean coffins must stay intact and well preserved. Some coffins are really brittle thats why it shouldnt be touched.

It took me an hour to decide whether to explore the caves or not because first I’m afraid of the dark,Im a bit claustrophobic and not physically fit. When people explore caves, they call it spelunking. According to my guide, the Cave Connection tour is about 3 hours and activities include rapelling that Im afraid about. He also said that my experience in Sagada is not complete without being inside the cave and he is absolutely right. “I can do this, bahala na”, I said to myself. 

Armed with prayers and confidence, I finally ventured inside the cave. There is no turning back at this point because its even harder to get out. My guide brought a lamp to illuminate the cave and he said that I should trust him and trust the rope. I couldnt figure out what he exactly meant because I was already scared. The first challenge was rapelling down about 15 feet to the ground. I recalled he said, to trust the rope and I hold on to it, or else fracture awaits me down below. My guide was also used as a human ladder to assist me going down. He taught me techniques on where to put my hands and feet to create balance and strong hold. 

I surrived rapelling down and DONT EVER TELL  MY MOTHER what I did. Another challenge was so fit yourself in a small hole like the one above. Thank goodness I was able to fit there, its not an easy task and Im starting to feel adrenaline rush. Moving on, we traversed difficult and life threatening obstacles but I made it through. You just have to trust the rope and guide. 

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Lovely, Heavenly, Absolutely - Finding Inner peace in Sagada

Nestled on the highlands of Mountain Province is a beautiful quiet town of Sagada, often called the Shangri-La town of the Philippines. 

 Sagada is one of the most beautiful place in the Philippines for people who just want to relax and be in one with nature, it is sorrounded by beautiful mountains filled with pine trees and thanks to its elevation, the place is enjoying a cool temperature throughout the year.

GETTING HERE

Bontoc is a favorite stopover for travels to want to visit Sagada and from here they can ride a jeepney for approximately 45minutes to 1 hour. At the moment, there is an ongoing road widening project and soon it will cut the travel time by half once all roads are concreted. 

 Upon reaching Sagada, I have to time to waste and explored the area immediately. I just so love the place, its very quiet and the people are just friendly and there is a great number of people who converse well on English. When you get here, its better to stop at the Tourist Information Center operated bu the SAGGAS group, here they offer tours that will make your stay more fun and memorable. 

I love the place so much, it  provides an escape to the busy life of the city, walking around town and seeing the mountains provides a sense of inner peace with in you. Here, you can relax and break free from the stresses of work and forget your worries or problems.

THINGS TO DO 

First stop was at Echo Valley. Located just minutes from the town center provides visitors an access to the history of the town.

This valley was the set up of the tribals wars that happened centuries but thanks to the christian missionaries, it has stopped and the feud between tribes subsides. Here in the cemetary, some people here were victims from the Japanese invasion during the World War II but whats really intriguing are the graves beyond these cemetery. 

Mountains and mountains everywhere  but the thing that separates Sagada from the rest is the limestone rock formations. Usually, limestones grow on sea rather on land. Many believe in a legend that before Sagada was covered with the ocean thats why limestone rocks are here. 

Beneath those limestone rocks is the thing that Sagada is famous for– its the Hanging Coffins. It is one unique feature in Sagada that no one should miss because no other place in the Philippines or even the world can you see this. Although some say that China and Indonesia has similar. This tradition continues to live even until now, the brown coffin below the blue coffin with a cross, was just placed here a year ago. 

According to tradition, these coffins were placed hanging instead 6 feet below the ground, because they believe that when bodies are burried on soil, their spirits will have difficulty going above the ground as compared to this hanging coffins which gives spirits the freedom to wander around.

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On track: Passing the Halsema Highway, Philippines Most scenic and dangerous

Because of the typhoon that hit the Philippines a week ago, I have made some few minor adjustments to my  trips depending on the weather patterns. The rule was if Southeastern Luzon will be flooded then I’ll head up North and vice versa. But thankfully, the weather started to be better again and my travel blogger friends in Manila started to talk about the sun is now shining and the waters already recceded. Finally, touchdown in Manila and no trace of rains on sight, all clear blue skies.

So I finally made up my mind to head upnorth in the Central Luzon or the Highlands of Cordillera Region. Travelling to Cordillera entails alot of sitting because of the distance and this will be an approximately 13 hours travel. My trip started at dawn, about 4:00am at Victory Liner - Taft to Baguio. Most travellers take advantage of midnight trips because they can save from hotel accommodation and will just sleep in the comfortable coach. However, because I watched the midnight premier of Transformers 3 at SM Mall of Asia, I stumbled on the 4:00am schedule. According to my research,  last bus to Bontoc leaves at 1:00pm in Baguio, so I would still have ample time. 

Upon reaching Baguio, I realized that I’m unpreprepared. I failed to bring jacket for the cold temperature in Cordillera. Good thing SM Baguio had a cheap jacket on sale at Surplus Shop Store. 

The bus that would take me to the CAR was this old non airconditioned bus but who needs airconditioner in this cold region. The earliest bus they say leaves at 6am and runs every hour until 1:00pm. It was about 12:50pm that I realized again that I should be riding the direct bus to Sagada instead the bus going to Bontoc, Benguet. But anyway, this is just part of an adventure. Be ready always for the unexpected turns. The fare was cheap PhP202 from Baguio to Bontoc. 

Finally, we were off to the mountains of Cordillera. We were driving to the Baguio-Bontoc Highway which zigzags dangerously along the mountain cliffs. I didn’t know that the highway was called the Halsema Highway until I had a research from travel bloggers. And boy, it is surely a dangerous place to drive. It requires precision driving because I noticed that we were like inches away to the cliff and huge trucks are also trailing infront of us on the other side of the road. I bet that a single mistake or a faulty wirings in the bus can lead us straight to the great depth below. Please dont drink and drive here. Drivers should take a good dose of caffeine and passengers must really pray for their safety. 

Whats an adventure without a little thrill right? Still going zigzag, I observed that some roads doesnt have a border or protective barrier againts the steep hills. So, if something happens you’ll be on your way down to the bottomless pit. Anyway, thats part of the thrill again. I guess the drivers here are now expert in manuevering the roads. Another deadly factor was he thick fogs hovering the highway, if your not accurate or focused, you can lose your track. 

The rain here had just ended and probably created this cold breeze. It was very chilly that time I had to wear socks and wear extra covering. I should have bought the bonnet and thick hand gloves for added warmth and comfort. 

Finally, we had a short stop from the butt-aching trip to stretch out, comfort room break and have something to eat and drink to beat the cold. Moving on, I can see lots of trucks carrying huge loads of vegetables freshly picked. This vegetables will be sold in the region and towards Manila. 

We passed by another town and saw people selling their produce. Vegetables here are really fresh and cheap. A bagful of brocolli cant cost P25 and in our town, it can reach a maximum of P150 per kilo. 

Moving on, the Halsema Highway is infact the Philippines Highest Highway system that reached 7000ft above sea level. I was truly honored to pass by the highway. For me, it is a Philippine engineering marvel because of its size and complexity of construction considering the height and the weather. Indeed, the Halsema Highway is a destination itself. 

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Philippine National Railways - Home Along Da Riles

One of the first things I want to do in Manila on my 1 week trip this month is to ride the Philippine National Railway (PNR) Trains for the very first time.

My journey to the capital was just in time for the relaunching of the new BICOL EXPRESS trains from Manila to Naga City in Bicol Region the following day. So, I decided to take an introductory ride along the PNR trains that ply in Manila. However, many people I’ve talked to doesnt know about PNR and because I was so excited I hired a taxi to take me to the nearest PNR station but unbelievably, he also doesnt know about it, all he was saying was the MRT/LRT stations  that I was familiar about. So, I looked for another taxi and finally took me to the PNR station from Gil Puyat in Edsa. But it was not easy because I had to explain more about the PNR trains.

Finally, we arrived at VITO CRUZ station near Makati. Im so excited because this is my first time riding the PNR and I heard that their trains are different from the MRT/LRT. From Vito Cruz, my ride will take me to Alabang Station. Trains arrived on time at 5:00pm. Once the train stopped at the platform, I noticed many passengers were standing and holding the rails. It was about to be full. Maybe this was now the beginning of the rush hour. 

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At every station, passengers are filling up more and more and more. The scene inside was OUTRAGEOUS, people were pushing each other. One observation is that people lack the courtesy for the alighting passengers. When the doors open, passengers outside rushed in to the cabin and leaving the departing passengers stuck and fighting their way out. People inside were shouting loudly and pushing the alighting passengers out. Gladly for me, I was in the corner, away from the mob. 

Another station we stopped, I couldnt remember where we were now because there were just too many passengers. When I was in Davao, I bragged about my friends that India’s DELHI MRT is the most crowded MRT ever that I experienced. It was true that when I was Delhi, the cabin was so full or overly packed with people to the 10th level. But here at PNR, it was worst, I could say that PNR Manila is the MOST CROWDED EVER, in fact I had difficulty of breathing already because 1 guy was already pushing me towards the wall. Basta, grabe ang crowd. Adding to that was the airconditioning system was not working at the time. 

Finally, at 6:00pm, I reached Alabang safe and in piece. The station was the last and I hope that my return trip to Tutuban will be more comfortable. 

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Going to MRT or Baclaran from NAIA Terminal 3

People nowadays are always looking for a means to travel the cheapest way. 

If you are arriving from NAIA Terminal 3 from any Cebu Pacific or Airphil Express flights, you can use the MiniBus service that will connect you to Baclaran or MRT-Edsa Station. 

Simply, go outside the arrival hall and walk towards the carpark. From there you can see a blue sign on the wall that would guide you to the location of the Bus stop. 

Choose the Bus Station Route 2 because this will take you to Baclaran and MRT Lines. The MiniBus operates every 40 minutes depending on the traffic along the way. 

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